Reviews

The cheerful staff greets you loudly in Japanese when you enter and leave. The waitress was very friendly and the place was adequately staffed for a busy Friday evening. The food arrived quickly and the tea was refilled regularly. The portions were generous and not expensive. This is one of the best Japanese restaurants in the area and I recommend that you try it. The restaurant is small, so there may be some wait time, but this is outweighed by the great service and food.

Fatty Cow is a fairly new establishment decorated with gray floor tiles and dark wooden tables that give a Taiwanese bubble tea restaurant vibe. The chairs' back support are tall enough to make it difficult for waiters to reach in and refill the tea. The seats are not wide, so a bigger person may find them small. Like other hot pot places, there are wooden table trays to hold the raw food and small rectangular tables and large round tables populate the interior. The food arrived pretty quickly and the hot pot water was refilled a couple times when it was low.

Each person receives a plate, bowl, and dipping plate. There are four dipping sauces/oils and the peanut butter and XO sauce is a tasty combination when mixed with soy sauce. The vegetables and pork neck strips are fresh and the oyster size is generous, but some complained it tastes fishy. The fatty beef is not that fat while the fried tofu does not have much tofu in it. Don't overcook the fried fish skin because they are meant to be eaten crispy. For dessert, a cube of mango pudding was served.

The clean and odour-free bathrooms may be difficult to spot because the sign is located on the far left wall. The single-person bathrooms are roomy enough to accommodate a wheelchair. The cost per child at $15 is a bit steep and only cash and debit is accepted. Fatty Cow is relatively small in size, but had enough seating to accommodate all the diners that evening. There are only two parking spots in the back, but free parking can be found on 35th Avenue. The restaurant is located on the corner of 35th and Victoria (east side of Victoria St) and their web site is http://www.fattycowhotpot.com/. There are not many hot pot places in Vancouver and Fatty Cow is a decent one.

Like other reviewers, the biggest problem was the value of the food. You pay top dollars, yet the portions are quite small. Definitely not what one would expect to pay. Some of the dishes were kind of salty too. I wouldn't recommend this restaurant because it will leave a hole in your wallet and you can get more bang for your buck elsewhere. Besides these problems, everything else was alright. The food didn't take that long to arrive.